When a people is stripped of its original toponymy, its social, political, cultural and spiritual references are removed and any possibility of emancipation is blocked. The Indian Act, which has placed Aboriginal people under the guardianship of the Canadian government for more than 150 years, a racist law, has led to the erosion of First Nations culture, the uprooting of generations of Aboriginal people, created a spiral of poverty and a lack of self-esteem. It is a real cultural genocide to crush the way of seeing the indigenous world.
Indigenous artists have been marginalized, sometimes even ignored by the Quebec arts system, being more or less invisible in discussions of cultural issues. The history of legislation, cultural institutions, broadcasters was written without us, and that unfortunately created a blockage, because we are constantly in the minority in decision-making. In fact, until recently, Indigenous peoples were not seen as equal participants in a shared modernity.
In order to counterbalance this heavy common history, Aboriginal artists have a responsibility to take as much space as possible by expressing themselves. Remaining silent would be a success of the Canadian government’s assimilation plan.
My role as an artist is to analyze these ignored tragedies, but also to keep the discussions alive. My artistic approach comes from an intrinsic desire for expression and self-definition, but it is also part of a sociological reflection on colonial powers. The plurality of expressions is important in order to avoid single speech and encourage the diversity of voices. I am only one artist among others, and my voice is only one among a multitude of voices. I am fully aware of the power of the images that I convey in my works, and how these can become a precursor of political and social proposals. It all depends on the message, who carries it and how it is used. The tools I use, such as photography and the relationship to images, contribute to the emancipation movement to support, heal and empower our communities. I want to offer a new perspective. Tinting with color events too often depicted in black and white. Offer a passage from darkness to light, which is turned towards hope.
Decolonization
Many Indigenous artists today see contemporary art practices as a process of decolonization, reappropriation and reclamation. We now have the tools to express ourselves on the same level as others, which feeds identity determinism and contributes to the process of emancipation of an entire nation. New Indigenous artistic and political movements are also moving toward emancipation from the shadows of collective and personal narratives. Art would therefore make it possible to oppose the violence of the world.
We are talking about creation in a country that has just recognized that it has systematically practiced cultural genocide against Aboriginal people for more than a hundred years. The construction of our image is shaped, broken down and recomposed, naturally responding to the years of bans on artistic expression under the Indian Act. This new freedom of expression is manifested by an accelerated passage of the various artistic movements in the history of art with the aim of shaping our image according to our own codes. Our works are the symbol of a recovery of self-confidence for a new generation of Aboriginal people who can express themselves freely.
Culture is something alive, which cannot be stereotyped and frozen in time. We have finally arrived at a point in our history, as Aboriginal people, where it is possible to present our art as contemporary expression by creating works that are full of nuances, destined to change the paradigm. Art is a continuous process, which lives and breathes.
Justice and dignity
I am proud to be Anishinabé Kwe. I am surrounded by strong and resilient women, whose voices bring change. I recognize their courage in their gaze when they fix the lens of my camera. The women I present in my photographs have nobility. They are strong, indigenous, and proud of it. They challenge the gaze, ask to be seen and heard. We share the same vision and the same commitment to our communities. Our voices, previously muffled, can now resonate beyond our borders, with justice and dignity.
I believe that closed places like galleries and museums allow a representation of the world. This is particularly what makes the strength of an event like the World Press Photo, which becomes a space of sociability and persuasion where, thanks to art, we can build new devices making it possible to orient, shape and to provide constructive opinions on current issues. Today, they are places where Indigenous and non-Indigenous people can peacefully come together and promote a sustainable culture. These issues must be inserted into the cultural and political fabric of Quebec society so that they cease to be the remote problem of a remote community, so that Aboriginal people, and more particularly Aboriginal women, can stop be marginalized. My photographs, which I reveal in the exhibition Ikwewak(Women), take a look at my generation which wishes to transpose itself positively into the future, relying on tradition, while taking its rightful place in society. It is an invitation to build the future together for the seven generations to come, with optimism, and trying not to transpose the resentment of the past. Our common future depends on our ability to ask questions and listen.